Turning Connections To Conversations When Selling With LinkedIn, Episode #112

Most sales professionals don’t realize that selling on LinkedIn® is not only possible but also powerfully effective. This episode of #SellingWithSocial is a “takeover” featuring Viveka von Rosen as host of the show, interviewing Mario in order to highlight the content of the new Vengreso course, “Selling With LinkedIn®.” You’re going to hear…

How to use existing LinkedIn® connections to get referrals to your prospects

How to follow your prospects strategically and get on their radar through engagement

The InMail secret weapon

The RIGHT way to send a connection request

How to convert connections into conversations

And more…

If you’ve been wondering how to make the most of LinkedIn® for selling, wonder no more! This episode gives you the basics on how to use the most prominent business-oriented social media platform to connect with prospects who fit your buyer persona perfectly. Don’t miss it!

There Is Nothing More Powerful Than Starting Connections Through Referrals

In a recent webinar, the Vengreso team held (Entering Into The Mind of The Marketing Executive Buyer), every exec who participated made one thing very clear: The BEST way to get a connection with them is through a referral from someone they already know. That means referrals are your golden ticket into the executive prospect’s office.

But how do you get referrals when you don’t know what connections the two of you have in common? ANSWER: You do it via LinkedIn®.

In this episode, Mario outlines a two-step process for finding and utilizing LinkedIn® referrals to the people who match your buyer persona. Keep reading to see exactly how it works and listen to this episode to hear it fleshed out in detail.

It’s true, you can use the tools baked-in to LinkedIn® to get personal referrals to the prospects you’d most like to talk to. Here’s how it works:

STEP ONE: Look through your prospect’s connections to see who they know that you also know. These are called “mutual” or “shared” connections. Ideally, you’ll see multiple people who are connected with both of you. What do you do then? Send a message to MULTIPLE mutual or shared connections. There’s a reason for that, and in this episode, Mario details why and what that request should say.

STEP TWO: Send a scripted sample message that will be sent to the prospect, to the connection who has agreed to make the referral. You want to make it as easy for them as possible. They should modify it to fit their voice and relationship with the person. This saves them time and enables you to make it quick and easy for them to do this favor for you.

Listen to learn more about who are the ideal connections to make referrals for you, how to craft your messaging and more.

Connect With Sales Prospects By Following Them Effectively On LinkedIn®

When you “follow” someone on LinkedIn®, do you know what that allows you to do? Following someone allows you to see the person’s posts and articles on your homepage without being connected to them. That’s a HUGE advantage when it comes to building the knowledge base you need in order to effectively connect with prospects through LinkedIn®. It also enables you to get on their radar in a pre-connection way so that when you do reach out to them, you won’t be an entire stranger.

Here’s how it works: Imagine that you find an ideal buyer for your product or service and you choose to follow them on LinkedIn®. They will receive notification that someone followed them (you). In many cases, they will check out your LinkedIn® profile. Pay attention to when this happens, it will show you that they are definitely active on LinkedIn®.

Once you’ve followed them, what then? It’s time to ENGAGE! As you interact with your prospects by commenting or asking questions about the resources and posts they’ve shared, you are building positive sentiment, displaying your expertise in the industry, and making yourself available. You are able to build the KNOW, LIKE, and TRUST factor with every interaction.

Listen to learn how to use LinkedIn® InMail and connection requests appropriately, how and why to incorporate video, and how to apply the PVC Sales Methodology™ to everything you do in relation to prospects.

PERSONALIZED Connection Requests Can Lead to Sales Conversations

How many times have you received a connection request via LinkedIn® where the person requesting to connect didn’t bother to tell you why they are connecting with you or how they came to know about you? It’s typical, but the added touch of a personalized connection request goes a long way toward building positive sentiment and familiarity.

So when you finally make a connection request with a prospect, do what you can do personalize it – and be sure to use the PVC Sales Methodology™ (personalize, add value, include a call to action). When you do, most people receiving the request recognize the additional effort you took and accept the request. Then you’ve got your foot in the door to engage with the prospect on a deeper, more meaningful level – eventually leading to sales conversations. This is social selling. You’re developing a relationship on social platforms, not selling.

Don’t miss this episode. It’s one of the most practical “how-to” conversations you’ll ever hear about selling with LinkedIn®.

Mario Martinez Jr.

Mario is the CEO and Co-founder of Vengreso. He spent 84 consecutive quarters in B2B Sales and Leadership roles growing hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue annually.
Mario is one of 20 sales influencers invited to appear in the Salesforce documentary film “The Story of Sales” launched in 2018. He was named 2019’s Top 10 Sales Influencers by The Modern Sales Magazine, 2018’s Top 25 Most Influential Inside Sales Professional, Selling Power Magazine’s 2018 Top Sales Training and Coaching Consultant, and was recognized in 2019 as one of the top Social Media Leaders by The Social Shake Up.
As a renowned digital sales evangelist, Mario teaches marketing and sales professionals how to develop an engaging personal brand to attract today’s modern buyer using the digital sales ecosystem. Mario is the host of the popular Selling With Social Podcast. He’s been featured in Forbes, INC., Entrepreneur and was formerly a contributor to the Huffington Post. He’s a highly sought-after Keynote Speaker with brands such as LinkedIn, Cisco and many more. He is also known to open a speech with a Salsa dance.
Follow him on YouTube, LinkedIn, or on Twitter.